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Spring 2018 : Energy company and foundation donate $1 million to benefit young MD Anderson cancer patients

Energy company and foundation donate $1 million to benefit young MD Anderson cancer patients

Energy Transfer Partners and Sunoco LP toured Pediatrics at MD Anderson during a visit to present a check for $1 million

BY Leslie Friedman

Representatives of Energy Transfer present a check for $1 million to MD Anderson.
Photo by Adolfo Chavez III

Energy was abundant at MD Anderson’s Children’s Cancer Hospital in January, when leaders of Energy Transfer Partners (ETP) and Sunoco LP toured Pediatrics, met staff and presented a check for $1 million.

Dallas-based ETP, a master limited partnership with one of the largest and most diversified energy portfolios in the U.S., and its employees have given $2.5 million to MD Anderson since 2014. These funds have supported key pediatric cancer research initiatives.

Peter Pisters, M.D., president of MD Anderson; Richard Gorlick, M.D., division head, Pediatrics; and Kris Mahadeo, M.D., section chief and medical director of Pediatric Stem Cell Therapy, accepted the donation.

“It is critical that we find a cure for pediatric cancer,” says Gorlick. “Cancer is the No. 1 cause of death in children due to disease, and currently only 3% of funding goes into pediatric cancer research. This donation will help fill a large gap of what’s needed to treat young patients.”

The past year was a phenomenal year for pediatric cancer immunotherapy, which uses a patient’s immune system to fight cancer, says Mahadeo.

“Among children who receive treatment for leukemia, almost 90% are cured,” he says. “We want to see that reach 100%. This donation will help us to better achieve that goal.”

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